Neighborhoods

Select Local Merchants

The premier destination for superb coffee and good sandwiches, Sit and Chat Cafe in Buffalo is one of the area's top-rated restaurants. It's a local favorite for guests that want excellent food.
Though the overall price can be a bit on the low side, you won't be sacrificing any quality.
If you're in a hurry, you can always take advantage of the convenient take-out offerings.
A reputable favorite for any meal of the day, any time is a good time to swing by Sit and Chat Cafe. Visitors to the restaurant have the ability to park nearby on the street.

Tim Hortons in Buffalo on Niagara St is a well-known bakery, offering a family-oriented ambience with terrific coffee and tasty fast food. It's a culinary destination for visitors that want good food.
Though the prices are considered to be lower than average, you aren't going to sacrifice any quality. In fact, you should be able to enjoy a good meal for $11 or $12, and can probably get in and out for $8 if you try.
If you want to surf the web or knock some work out, feel free to connect your device to the complimentary WiFi.
One of the tastier franchises in the area, this Tim Hortons definitely stands out from the competition.

Chefs at Amici Ristorante stir pots of their house made sauces to pair with linguini and tortellini or bake with their veal parimgiana. Along with their menu of classic Italian dishes, the restaurant owners also stock their bar with wines from Italy and around the world.

Pick up a batch of birthday cookies or opt for a classic cake at Tim Hortons, a rich bakery sure to hit the spot.
Low-fat is one factor and amazing taste is another. Come see which wins out at Tim Hortons.
Need to catch up on some work or the latest news? Get online at Tim Hortons with their complimentary wifi.
Many diners choose to drive to Tim Hortons, as there are numerous parking options nearby.

Check out eccentric Sweetness 7 Cafe for the next wave of coffee culture.
Got kids? No problem at Sweetness 7 Cafe! The coffee shop is a fantastic spot for families to dine together.
Check email, shop online, or get the latest game scores on Sweetness 7 Cafe's free wifi.
Ideal for birthday parties or other large get-togethers, Sweetness 7 Cafe has all the room you'll need to be comfortable.
Make the most of the warm summer months by dining outdoors in Sweetness 7 Cafe's beautiful outdoor seating area.
Save a seat for man's best friend — this is a dog-friendly coffee shop.
No need for a wardrobe change when you hit Sweetness 7 Cafe — it's strictly casual.
You can also grab your food to go.
Find a space on the street or park in the lot not far from the coffee shop.
With prices below $15 per person, you can eat at Sweetness 7 Cafe as often as you like!

Whether you need help waking up in the morning or a mid-afternoon pick-me-up, the coffee at Starbucks will do the trick.
Starbucks is a local, healthy restaurant that caters to those with dietary needs, especially those with gluten-free sensitivities.
Starbucks provides seasonal outdoor seating — be sure to grab a chair before it's too late.
Not to be overlooked is Starbucks' no-charge wifi.
Hosting a swanky shindig? Call up Starbucks for their catering services.
Cyclists will also appreciate the plentiful space to lock up their bikes outside the coffee shop.
Prices don't get much better than this, either, with typical meals running under the $15 mark.
Early risers and night owls alike can enjoy Starbucks since it offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Groupon Guide

Isa Giallorenzo, the street-style blogger behind Chicago Looks, hasn’t gone out for cocktails or coffee lately. While pregnant, she’s been indulging in other ways, chief among them leisurely brunches. “Dinner is such a commitment. Brunch is so light. You're just hanging out,” she said. In terms of brunch food, she loves a good ol’ plate of hashbrowns, but also the all-organic fruit bowls at Owen + Alchemy, a juice bar in Chicago’s Logan Square. She also loves dressing for the occasion, as it allows her to experiment with her pregnancy style. Below, she put together her favorite brunch outfit, which, strangely enough, doesn’t include a single piece of maternity wear."I think brunch has to be easy, but also kind of festive... I try to do something that will make my friends happy to look at me."Her go-to outfit hinges on her current favorite piece—a tasseled chambray tunic that’s “really roomy” but not officially maternity-wear. “I'm trying to build my wardrobe… with pieces I can wear after, too,” she said."Dress for your body, dress for your taste, dress for your budget. Feel good. I would say, try to dare a bit, and if it feels fake, go back."She then put on a head scarf, one of her daytime staples—“because your hair might not be so good from the day before”—and added accessories that matched its purple color story. Isa loves purple so much, she owns glasses and sunglasses in the hue, which match her purple smartphone case, purse, and Birkenstocks. Isa’s pregnancy style is a major departure from her usual sensibilities. For one thing, she’s had to quit heels cold turkey. “I thought I would be able to get away with wedges, but [my feet] have to be totally flat. You've got so much more weight on you.” She’s also had to ditch her beloved defined waistlines, trading them for flowy tops and skinny pants. Pregnancy pants don’t fit her well, but she’s found that sizing up in her usual leggings works great."I buy maternity, but I also just buy bigger sizes, and men's too. Sometimes I buy men's T-shirts."Overall, Isa’s outlook right now is positive, whether you’re talking to her about brunch or about life."I've been so happy that I'm pregnant. I don't have to worry about my weight much. People are nice to me, and smile. I highly recommend this experience."Check out even more stylish peeps:A Boutique Owner's Perfect First-Date OutfitStreet Style

When I moved from Los Angeles to Chicago, I was surprised to find that what I missed most about my hometown was not the beaches, the mountains, or the uniformly great weather. It was the donuts. Five years and 5,000 half-assed old-fashioneds later, I’ve had time to reflect on why no other American city even comes close to topping LA’s donut game. From Randy’s in Inglewood to Stan’s in Westwood—and all the mom-and-pop shops in between—here are nine reasons why the best donuts in Los Angeles are also the best donuts period.1. A giant donut is literally the first thing you see when you’re flying into the airport.There’s no getting around the fact that LAX is a miserable place. But before visitors to this fair city are greeted with an hour of runway taxiing and searching for lost baggage, they get to feast their eyes on the massive donut that resides permanently atop Randy’s Donuts (805 W. Manchester Blvd.). Brothers Ron and Larry Weintraub co-own this landmark shop, which has appeared in such cinematic masterpieces as Earth Girls are Easy and Volcano. The drive-thru is open 24 hours—just in case you caught the redeye—and the classic jelly is better than any donut in your city.2. It’s not overrun by mediocre chains.Chain donut shops are fine, especially if you’re craving a sad, wilting maple bar and a scalding hot cup of America’s Most Overrated Coffee. But, hey, you know what’s even better? Pretty much every donut shop in Los Angeles. Bostonians may pride themselves on supporting the Big National Chain, but LA—like much of California—has staunchly resisted its intrusion for years. Drive through the city, and you’ll find a mom-and-pop donut shop on nearly every corner. Sure, they may not all be great, but you won’t know that until you try them. Think of it as playing the lottery with the odds stacked in your favor.3. You can get Chinese food and donuts under one roof.If you’ve lived in LA for any reasonable amount of time, you’ve likely stumbled across a shop that sells Chinese food alongside donuts. These small, hole-in-the-wall establishments may owe to the influx of Cambodian immigrants in the 1970s, though their donuts tend to be of the standard American variety. They’re also incredibly inexpensive, so it makes good economic sense to substitute a glazed cruller for a side of white rice. Check out Mom’s Donuts & Chinese Food (601 N. Silver Lake Blvd.) in Silver Lake and discover why LA really is the city where dreams come true.4. “Gourmet” donuts are a stupid fad, but LA even has those.Putting bacon on your donut is a sign of insecurity, and charging $4 for the resulting abomination should be a crime worthy of arrest. It’s not that experimentation is bad, per se, but sometimes a good thing just doesn’t need to be gussied up. The people of LA seem to know this intuitively, which is why you can still find a no-fuss, 50-cent donut everywhere you look. If you have special dietary restrictions, you can always hit up a vegan spot like Breakaway Bakery (5264 W. Pico Blvd.), but here’s a rule to live by: the best donuts belong in your belly, not on Instagram. 5. Shhh. The best donut shop in Chicago is an LA donut shop in disguise.If you live in Chicago, maybe you’ve visited a Stan’s Donuts recently. And while you were there, maybe you thought to yourself, “This is a good donut place.” You were right! But at its jelly-filled core, Stan’s in Chicago is really just a dressed-up version of the original Stan’s (10948 Weyburn Ave.), an unassuming stand in Westwood that’s been churning out the hits since 1965. 6. When New York bakers tried to get all meta-donut, LA beat 'em at their own game.By now you’ve surely heard of the cronut, the half-croissant, half-donut hybrid invented by Chef Dominique Ansel in his New York bakery. Is the cronut necessary? Of course not. But New Yorkers have this annoying habit of thinking they’re the best at everything, so LA was forced to take the cronut and make it even better. Hence the brûléed crullant from Semi Sweet Bakery (105 E. 6th St.) , a cruller-croissant that comes topped with two layers of brûléed sugar. In the low-budget class, the clear winner is the $2 faux-nut from California Donuts (3540 W. 3rd St.). Hey, New York, can you make a $2 cronut?7. Potato flour donuts are common in LA and nearly impossible to find elsewhere.Donuts made with potato flour were once not all that uncommon. Sold under the franchise name of Spudnuts, these donuts could be found everywhere from Alaska to the American South, but the parent company shut down in the late 1970s and independent stores gradually followed suit. Except in LA, that is, where Spudnuts is very much alive and ready to answer the burning question of “What does a potato donut taste like?” (Not like french fries, strangely enough).8. Most LA donut shops are open late, and plenty of them never close.Donuts are fatty, sugary, and inexpensive, which means they’re the perfect food to eat when your inhibitions leave you at 4 a.m. Thankfully, LA has no shortage of donut shops open 24 hours, including the aforementioned Randy’s and California Donuts.9. A donut bought in LA is a victory for the American Dream.There are plenty of reasons to crown LA the donut capital of the world—so many, in fact, that it’s almost silly to even be having this conversation. But the most compelling reasons lie in what kind of country we want America to be. Do we want to live in a country where a hardworking, ever-smiling couple like Ralph and Celia Primo (Primo’s Donuts, 2918 Sawtelle Blvd.) can battle the big chains and emerge victorious? Do we want to live in a country where you can exchange a single dollar bill for the best damn donut of your life? If your answer is “Yes!”, then come to LA. And look out for Randy’s on your way in.Photo illustrations by Mark Mills, GrouponDig in to these other delicious reads:Celebrate Pi Day with Six of America's Best Pies
A Chicago Hot-Dog Legend on How to Find the Best Hot Dog

Mobile gaming may be forecasted to make around $22 billion this year, but a growing number of gamers are finding their way back to pre-digital forms of entertainment. No longer feeling confined to the basement, these proud geeks have found a new home: the board-game cafe. Sure, a lot of bars and coffee shops host a game night or keep a deck of Trivial Pursuit cards on-hand. The board-game cafe, however, is an entirely new kind of meeting place where friends and strangers can play a round of Scrabble or take on newer games like Pandemic or Cards Against Humanity. For a deeper look, we turned to Greg May, owner of The Uncommons, a bright, sunlit Manhattan cafe that houses nearly 700 games. May was gracious enough to share his thoughts on the recent rise of the board-game cafe, as well as some of the dos and don’ts of in-store gaming.On the State of Board Games“There's definitely been a huge resurgence in board games. It's a big industry now and growing rapidly, thanks partially to the popularity of general ‘geek culture,’ along with a lot of new games that really offer compelling experiences. Cooperative games like Pandemic allow you to work together, which can be a great alternative to family fights.”On the Typical Crowd at a Board-Game Cafe“Sometimes, we see folks come in at 10 a.m. on Monday to spend the day with us, and tourists come by to shop even at midnight on Friday … Our crowd is really diverse—plenty of college students, but also lots of folks on first dates, indie game designers, and families.”On How First-Timers Should Behave“Just like at home or with friends, be reasonable and try not to be too competitive. Rules are open to interpretation, and the goal is to have a good time, not end up flipping over the tables.”On the Best Board Games for Newbies“We definitely suggest that folks check out the modern classics: Settlers of Catan, Ticket to Ride, and Dominion. From there, games like Munchkin and Fluxx are fun and chaotic; dexterity games like Jungle Speed bring something new to the table; and strategy buffs tired of Risk should certainly try Twilight Struggle, which is the number-one ranked board game of all time on BoardGameGeek.com.”On the Best Board Games for Couples“We always recommend Hive for two players. Of course, classics like Connect 4, Battleship, Scrabble, and Bananagrams are also big hits.”On Who to Ask If You Need the Rules Explained“As a rule, gamers love teaching new games. Some games, though, require detailed or lengthy explanations. In general, if folks are already playing, it's fine to ask about the game but not for help learning it. If you don't know a game but want to join, the procedure is simple: ask!”On Bringing Your Own Games to the Cafe“To avoid getting pieces mixed up, we suggest checking our library to see if we have a game before bringing it. But we're always happy when folks bring games that we don't have.”On the Importance of Board Games in the Modern World“The important thing is to have an analog experience, face-to-face, in the same room and across a table. Put down the phone and have an easy topic for conversation.” Of course, all of this boils down to one simple rule: just have fun. And remember that games are meant to draw people together, so don’t take it too personally if you lose a round.Photo courtesy of The Uncommons